What Shelter style is best for a Thru Hike? We look at tents, hammocks, tarps, and compare all the upsides of each to see if that makes the downsides worth it. In the end all shelters will work wonderfully but some may give you an easier time than others. You can buy cheap shelters, or you can buy expensive shelters, a personal decision as they both will work great. A matter more of how much weight do you wish to carry.
A quick note on fabrics, I lump most into one of two categories. An expensive option, or a cheap option, a lightweight option or a heavy option. DCF (dyneema composite fabric)(previously known as cuben fiber) and silnylon are two of the most common shelter fabrics out there. DCF being the lighter more expensive option, and silnylon being the heavier cheaper option. DCF works better in the rain and the wind, but may not last as long. While silnylon tends to stretch and bow in the wind and rain, but is super durable for long time use. It boils down to for me how much money you wish to spend as they will both keep you safe, both last you a long time, and both work great out in the wilderness.
I've personally used an ultralight 7x9 tarp setup for over 7,000 miles, Tents for more than 3,000 miles, and I'm pretty new to hammocks. I break down each choice for a long distance hike from my own experiences, including why I haven't used a hammock for anything.
A Tent is the best all around choice for everyone, offering a lot of space inside, protection from bugs and the elements, and they're relatively easy to use and setup. They are pretty darn lightweight so no worries there either!
A hammock can be setup anywhere there are trees, even over rocks or on the sides of clifs. Which is a huge advantage out east, but a huge disadvantage in many western states and long trails. The biggest reason to use a hammock is the overall comfort, what they lack in living space, they make up for ten fold in how nice it is to sleep and relax in them. If sleeping on the ground bothers you, this may be the best choice for you. They also provide a lot of the same protections a tent does, except can often be a bit heavier than a tent.
A tarp is by far the lightest of all the options, but comes with many downsides as a penalty. I personally still choose to use a tarp for 90% of my trips, sometimes going back to a tent when the conditions call for it. A tarp is totally exposed, and though you can set it up in many different ways to block wind or rain, it is a lot more tricky, and does require a lot more thought and effort. A tarp has no bug netting, so you either have to be more careul about where you setup to avoid them, or when you go hiking. You could also pair your tarp with a lightweight bivy or a small headnet which works to. The beauty in that is you can send them home or have them sent to you at any time you see fit. Think of a tarp as a tent, with a removable bugnet. Which may be over simplifying things as truly a tarp in every way takes more effort. But it is in most cases 3x lighter than even the lightest tents out there.
Whether you're hiking the Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, or anything in between I hope this video has been helpful!
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